Use these quirky cucurbits for cooking or making distinctive birdhouses, but get their growing conditions right first
rent ’s confront it , growing gourds is confusing . bottleful gourds are cucurbits , members of the gourd family Cucurbitaceae . Both beginner and experienced gardeners by and large can recognize the basic similarities they deal with other cucurbit likesquashorpumpkins , but what about growing them ? Can we originate them in the Northeast . If we can , how do we do it ?
A brief history of bottle gourds
Also call Crescentia cujete andbirdhouse gourds , nursing bottle gourd are botanically known asLagenaria siceraria , a species with a orphic scope that few botanists can concord upon . However , most call back that they herald from tropic regions of Africa . We know that up to 8,000 years ago people used dried feeding bottle gourd as bottles , bowl , and utensil . understandably their consumption today as rattle , bowls , and birdhouses is n’t just a brief social media trend . I think we can safely say that bottle calabash have been a viral phenomenon for chiliad of year .
How bottle gourds are different from other cucurbits
While most cucurbits are comparatively easy to raise in the Northeast , if you ’ve ever tried to upraise a crop of bottle gourds , you may have discovered that they are n’t necessarily as well-fixed to acquire as , let ’s say , pumpkins . understand a few basics about these industrial plant will help us master growing them in cool climate .
First of all , feeding bottle gourds are truetropical works ; they relish red-hot and humid weather . Soiltemperature is primal here , so spare lineal - inseminate outdoors for your butternut and blue Hubbard squash ; feeding bottle gourd need passion and should be started indoors , under brightness where it ’s warm .
When to start bottle-gourd seeds
Timing is central as well . A pumpkin can reach out due date relatively cursorily from an outdoor sowing in early June , but a tropic gourd like the nursing bottle gourd necessitate a longer growing time of year . I inseminate single seeds in individual pot indoors in mid - April , which gives them a 7- to 8 - hebdomad head start over outdoor - sown seeds engraft in early June . Keep seedling pots underhigh - intensity LED lightswhere temperatures never drop below 70 ° farad . It ’s even better to provide high temperature from the bottom with apropagationmat , particularly if you’re able to regulate it with a thermoregulator to remain at 80 ° F so that the soil is warm than the airwave .
When to transplant seedlings outside
Harden off plants in earlyJuneoutdoors , and plant them in the garden once the soil temperatures warm up and nighttime temperatures stay above 60 ° farad . This might be as late as mid - June in some year , closer to the summer solstice . If done sooner , the plant ’ growth may be stunt . In my garden , bottle gourds , along with other tropical gourds such as Asianmelons , caustic melon , and luffa , are all the last plants to leave the comforter and warmth of the indoors .
Provide the right soil and climbing support
Tropical calabash like these require gamey fertility , warmth , and ordered moisture , which can be pronounce for most cucurbit . But it ’s even more all-important with the tropical mintage , as they will need spare care to grow quickly without any emphasis during the hottest summertime months .
Bottle or birdhouse gourds are rude climber , producing the best results when grow on atrellisor a meshing burrow that is at least 7 feet mellow . Vinescan extend to with child lengths ( 15 to 25 feet tenacious or farsighted ) , so the sturdy the structure , the better . Some gourd tunnel can be beautiful in garden , especially when they are have in late summer with pendant gourd of all type hanging above your head .
How to hand-pollinate gourds
This radical of calabash get white peak , which on some form open late in the day and stay open through the evening and nighttime . This provides us a valuable wind , as night flowers generally are n’t pollinated by bees but instead by moth and beetle . Hand pollinationis often helpful if you miss hawkmoths or beetle that will do the job in your expanse .
bridge player cross-pollinate is gentle enough with a stepladder . Use a soft watercolor brush or a cotton plant swab wiretap to a chopstick . The goal is simple : remove pollen from the male flower ( the bloom with just a thin root at the bottom ) , then softly sweep the pollen into the female flower ( the one with the babe gourd at the bottom of the flower ) .
Do n’t be discouraged if your vine seem to be produce only male flowers ; this is distinctive for a few calendar week before the female flowers with the ovary come out , unremarkably in mid to former summertime . You ’re forwards of the game if you find unseasoned fruit mature without hand pollinating . give thanks the moths .
When to harvest bottle gourds
Harvestingthese gourds at the right time can be challenging , especially if an other frost peril your crop . Picking one too betimes is a trouble too , as it will simply decompose on the kitchen return . You ’ll know a bottle gourd is quick to be harvested if the stem that connects it to the plant life starts to shrivel and plough browned . This suggest that the calabash is stop rise , as it is pick up fewer nutrient from the industrial plant .
What to do with bottle gourds
You may be surprised to know that the bottle gourds areedibleand can be harvested untried for cooking . They ’re often treat like azucchiniin many cultures , but most of us use them as dried , ornamental gourd . For guile and for birdhouse , fruits must be harvest mature , bring around in a dry place , and then either bleach , seal , or paint .
Curing gourds for crafts
In tropic mood with long get seasons , gourd are often dried on the vine , but in our temperate mood , a nearly matured calabash pick green may take 3 to 6 calendar month to dry to its classifiable tan color properly . Since gourd are picked on the unripened side in cool climate , they often mold over a bit during the curing physical process , and drab spots may form on the skin . Some after - treatment , such as rouge or sanding , will be required .
Of course , most of the fun with bottle gourds is creating cunning with them . Once fully dry , they can be paint or have golf hole reduce in them for use as birdhouses ( once you shake out the seeds ) , or for many other crafts . Dried gourd are as hard as woodwind instrument and often can last a few years out of doors if brought indoors during the winter and clean out . Indoors they can last indefinitely . Aside from the classic bottle shape , feeding bottle gourds can also be work like long snakes ( up to 5 feet long ) or tremendous beach balls ( great for bowl ) , or they can be short and used as spoonful or baby rattling . This all depend on the mixture you choose .
utilize this guide to spring up neat bottleful gourds for cooking , craft , or anything else . Just be trusted to provide the right get conditions and to break up them at the right time .
For more northeasterly regional study , click here .
— Matt Mattus is the author of two book : master the Art of Flower GardeningandMastering the Art of Vegetable Gardening . He gardens in Worcester , Massachusetts .
Photos : Matt Mattus
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Bottle gourds are known for their funky shapes, which make them perfect for so many craft projects. But growing them properly can be challenging in cooler climates.
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Different varieties of bottle gourds have different appearances, such as the green and white gooseneck or speckled swan gourds.
Be sure not to move bottle-gourd seedlings outside too early in the year, as they hate the cold.
Bottle gourds perform better with something to climb on, such as a trellis.
You can tell male bottle-gourd flowers from female ones because the males tend to form earlier and the females have a budding fruit at their bases.
In order to turn a bottle gourd into a birdhouse, let it cure in a warm, dry place for 3 to 6 months before hollowing it out.
